Military Aid given to Child Soldier Users

Inviato da raymond il Mar, 10/13/2015 - 12:14

This week, President Barack Obama announced that four countries that use child soldiers — the Democratic Republic of Congo, Nigeria, Somalia, and South Sudan – will continue to receive United States military assistance. The decision is disappointing, particularly since Obama has a powerful tool at his disposal – the Child Soldiers Prevention Act – that allows him to withhold US military aid until governments end their exploitation of children in war. Instead, Obama has invoked “national interest” waivers that will allow these governments to receive over $161 million in US military aid in the coming year. Now let me say this although this is quite disappointing, there has been some success in this. The reason I say this is last year he also gave miitary aid to a couple countries that used child soldiers but this aid actually allowed the countries to stop using child soldiers due to the fact that they had more aid. So I guess you can say this is something that we will have to let unfold. Now that doesn't mean I approve of the choice but that there could be good reason and hope behind it. Now he has also denied some countries aid like Yemen in which 1 in every 3 soldiers is actually under 18. They have their aid completely suspended. What do you think about this choice?

“These boys have no idea what a child’s play is, childhood is an endangered and fleeting phase of life for everyone around here.” –Christian Ezora.”
― Ray Anyasi, Ujasiri, Democratic Republic of Congo